John's Take:
When you play for 8 teams over an 8 year career, you're a "journeyman." But Eddie House seems to have found a home here.
Eddie
had a record setting season from beyond the arc. He put on some
amazing displays this year. He can get hot and explode for 30 points
off the bench. But I think one thing this playoffs proved is that he's
pretty much a one-trick pony. He's a shooter and little else. He's
got a ton of energy and he'll try to do the things you ask him to do…
but he's only at his best when he's catching and shooting.
This year, Eddie was better than ever shooting the rock. Part of
that is because the C's stopped using him as a back up PG, and let him
play his role. He was so good, the Magic decided to put their best
available perimeter defender on the bench just to keep him in check. That's impressive. And as long as the Celtics have the Big 3 in place,
Eddie will play a nice role with the team.
Eddie House can opt out of his contract, which will pay him $2.8
million this upcoming season. I wonder if he'll try to cash in on his
record setting year, but I can't imagine another team is going to give
him much more than $3 million a year. Eddie's in a good situation
here, and we have a need for his specific role. But his role is too
specific for us to make a bigger offer to him if he does opt out. I'd
hate to see Eddie go… but if he passes on $2.8, I would just say
"thanks" and enjoy your 9th team.
Chuck's Take:
Tough to argue with any of John's points. Eddie was fantastic on the offensive end and he even improved his energy defensively – at least in the playoffs. He's at his best when he's playing with some of the first unit guys because they demand the defensive focus.
Eddie probably won't get more than $3 million per year, but he's likely to search out additional years on a contract. I wouldn't be surprised to see him opt out and test the waters. What's fair value for the Celtics? 2 years, $6 million.
Other "Reassessing" articles: Mikki Moore
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